- J
- J
- J
Mike is my younger brother. He is trying to get back on his feet after finally leaving his toxic girlfriend in Texas. He is now back in California where we grew up. He has nothing to live on.
Mike had to leave with nothing but the clothes on his back. My dad sent him $300 to spend on the bus ride home and food. But my dad is 83 years old and lives on SSI. He has very little for himself. He is wheelchair-bound as he broke his back a few years ago and he also has a balance disorder where he can't walk without falling over. With Coronavirus going around, I strongly advise him not to let Mike in his small mobile home.
I picked him up at the Claremont bus station and took him to a nearby motel where he can get some rest. I also gave him $50. The room was $75. So now with the bus ticket, some food, cigs, and the room, he’s broke. Oh, he also has a stomach condition that makes him have severe diarrhea. So he got some Pepto Bismol to help with that.
Mike has been making a series of bad decisions that led him here. They have both been struggling to make a living. They’ve been drinking and fighting because of this. They originally intended to stay sober but because of their money issues, they still drink. And that’s why he wanted to get away from her and come back to California. It was his worst decision to go back with her 5 years ago.
What happened 5 years ago? Actually I should say around 10 years ago when it all started. Mike had a good job working as a route driver for Pro Courier in Los Angeles. He was the only driver they trusted to drive the company bobtail truck. The rest of the drivers had to drive their own cars on smaller routes.
One day, through a friend, he met her and they hit it off. She was an ex-stripper turned fashion designer. They started spending more time together and it wasn’t long before he moved in with her. At that time they both drank a lot and after Mike moved in with her, she stopped working and just became a drunk. Mike spent most of his own pay on rent and booze and after a short while, Mike struggled to make enough money to support both of them. They ran out of money over and over. They moved to cheaper places and slowly lost everything. But he always kept his job at least.
One day, they went to live with her parents. They were drunks with nothing and they would get drink often. But until this point in his life, Mike has never been in jail. He still had his job. After her father died, they barely had enough money to buy food and pay utilities for the 3 of them. Mike worked hard to keep it together despite the fact that everyone told him he has to get away. He wasn't married to her or anything. But he felt at that point, they needed him more than ever. If he wasn’t there, they would really have nothing.
So when did the real trouble start? One day, they were drunk and they got into a fight. His girlfriend and her mom ganged up on him. He locked himself in a room and tried to escape from the argument they were having. They broke down the door, so he dragged her out of the house and wouldn’t let her back in. She called the cops and they arrested him because he wouldn't let her back in the house. He told the cop if he lets her back in, he's gonna kill her. So the cop arrested him for Terrorist Threats, which is a felony.
When I heard about it, I immediately started to figure out how to bail him out. I first called his job and convinced them to promise, when he gets out, he still has a job. They did. Then I went and figured out a way to get him an apartment. I was able to get his car from the girlfriend. Then I put up my house as collateral and paid $5000, which is 10% of the $50,000 bail, to the bondsman. So after about a week in jail, Mike was released. The first thing we did was go to get his dog from his girlfriend. Then he went back to work and stayed in his new apartment for about a month.
But she kept begging him to come back and apologized for all the drama. He was free and clear, away from her. Back to his life as before he met her. But he fell for it and went back to her. He completely disregarded all the effort I put in to help him and all the advice of his friends.
While awaiting trial, he continued to work and continued to drink with her and get into more fights, but not so bad as to call the cops again. When the trial came around, they sentenced him to 1 year in prison. When he went to prison, he lost everything. They repossessed his car. Everyone got evicted and the girlfriend and her mother went and lived with her sister.
When Mike was released from prison, the court issued a restraining order saying he cannot go within 500 feet of his girlfriend. But when he got out, he literally had nothing and nowhere to go. No money. I gave him $2000 to get back on his feet. I told him I will help him more as long as he never goes back to her again. But you guessed it, he went back to her again. He said he wanted to use her to help earn an income so he can get back on his feet. Soon they both got jobs. She worked at Petco and he worked in construction. They also sold whatever they could find in yard sales, on Amazon. But, after a while their drinking got out of control again and she didn’t go to work. And that leads up to the 5-year mark.
Mike finally found a better paying job in Texas with Amazon. So they decided to move there. Once they arrived, they found a mobile home for rent and they both decided to stop drinking. They both stopped drinking completely. Mike soon found a better job with the Toyota factory there. It paid better and was closer. They were doing ok for a while. Mike was promoted from the warehouse to inspector which meant better pay. But he got sick.
Mike got a bacterial infection called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) that made him stay home sick. He also got Pancreatitis. He took all his sick days and vacation days off. Then he applied for disability and took FML thinking he would still have a job after he got well again. But after 6 months they let him go because he didn’t follow the process correctly.
Since they both have no jobs, all the money they had ran out and they started drinking and fighting constantly. He was planning to leave and come back to California so he can start over because now he realized how bad it is to live with her. He needs to support himself, not both of them. And get sober.
So last week he decided to do it. He grabbed some clothes and his shoes, jumped in the car and took off to California. She immediately called the cops and said that he stole the car. It’s actually registered in both their names. The police found Mike right away. After they found him, they checked the registration and saw that it was indeed his car. They were going to let him go but she then told the cops that there is a restraining order against him and that he shouldn’t be living with her at all.
Upon hearing about the restraining order, they arrested him and he went to jail again. He had forgotten about the restraining order and she used it against him. They let her come get the car. My dad heard about him being in jail again and took $1500, his stimulus check and some extra cash he had, and bailed him out. Mike knew now that if he went back to her again, it would mean more prison time. So he called the police to escort him back to their house so he can get his things.
The police escorted him back and she hid the car. But they didn’t do anything to her. The car had his clothes, his shoes, and his bibles. All the things he wanted to take with him to California. But she hid the car and the cops weren’t going to help him find it. He stayed a few blocks away near a store for a while thinking he knew where it was hidden but she got busy telling all their friends that Mike tried to steal the car and that he stole a lot of money from her and got arrested for it. He didn’t steal anything but no one was going to help him and he couldn’t find the car.
So we're back to where my dad sent him another $300 to help him get a bus ride home. Like I said earlier, Mike has made a lot of bad decisions over the past 10 years. But he’s back in California and the one mistake he made, going back to her time and time again, he can’t make anymore. She has his stimulus check and the car. She has the dogs, and she has the support of all their friends in Texas. But Mike has nothing.
If anyone can help him with a little charity. PLEASE HELP! He just needs a place to find a place to stay so he can take a shower and get another job so he can take care of himself. He’s terrified of living on the street. He doesn’t want a dog. He doesn’t drink anymore. He has a bike. I also gave him 5 pairs of pants, socks, shirts, and shoes. I got lots of stuff he can sell or pawn but the pawnshops are closed because of the coronavirus. He needs cash to help keep him going until he finds a room and a job to start earning a living again.
Thanks,
Dave
Mike had to leave with nothing but the clothes on his back. My dad sent him $300 to spend on the bus ride home and food. But my dad is 83 years old and lives on SSI. He has very little for himself. He is wheelchair-bound as he broke his back a few years ago and he also has a balance disorder where he can't walk without falling over. With Coronavirus going around, I strongly advise him not to let Mike in his small mobile home.
I picked him up at the Claremont bus station and took him to a nearby motel where he can get some rest. I also gave him $50. The room was $75. So now with the bus ticket, some food, cigs, and the room, he’s broke. Oh, he also has a stomach condition that makes him have severe diarrhea. So he got some Pepto Bismol to help with that.
Mike has been making a series of bad decisions that led him here. They have both been struggling to make a living. They’ve been drinking and fighting because of this. They originally intended to stay sober but because of their money issues, they still drink. And that’s why he wanted to get away from her and come back to California. It was his worst decision to go back with her 5 years ago.
What happened 5 years ago? Actually I should say around 10 years ago when it all started. Mike had a good job working as a route driver for Pro Courier in Los Angeles. He was the only driver they trusted to drive the company bobtail truck. The rest of the drivers had to drive their own cars on smaller routes.
One day, through a friend, he met her and they hit it off. She was an ex-stripper turned fashion designer. They started spending more time together and it wasn’t long before he moved in with her. At that time they both drank a lot and after Mike moved in with her, she stopped working and just became a drunk. Mike spent most of his own pay on rent and booze and after a short while, Mike struggled to make enough money to support both of them. They ran out of money over and over. They moved to cheaper places and slowly lost everything. But he always kept his job at least.
One day, they went to live with her parents. They were drunks with nothing and they would get drink often. But until this point in his life, Mike has never been in jail. He still had his job. After her father died, they barely had enough money to buy food and pay utilities for the 3 of them. Mike worked hard to keep it together despite the fact that everyone told him he has to get away. He wasn't married to her or anything. But he felt at that point, they needed him more than ever. If he wasn’t there, they would really have nothing.
So when did the real trouble start? One day, they were drunk and they got into a fight. His girlfriend and her mom ganged up on him. He locked himself in a room and tried to escape from the argument they were having. They broke down the door, so he dragged her out of the house and wouldn’t let her back in. She called the cops and they arrested him because he wouldn't let her back in the house. He told the cop if he lets her back in, he's gonna kill her. So the cop arrested him for Terrorist Threats, which is a felony.
When I heard about it, I immediately started to figure out how to bail him out. I first called his job and convinced them to promise, when he gets out, he still has a job. They did. Then I went and figured out a way to get him an apartment. I was able to get his car from the girlfriend. Then I put up my house as collateral and paid $5000, which is 10% of the $50,000 bail, to the bondsman. So after about a week in jail, Mike was released. The first thing we did was go to get his dog from his girlfriend. Then he went back to work and stayed in his new apartment for about a month.
But she kept begging him to come back and apologized for all the drama. He was free and clear, away from her. Back to his life as before he met her. But he fell for it and went back to her. He completely disregarded all the effort I put in to help him and all the advice of his friends.
While awaiting trial, he continued to work and continued to drink with her and get into more fights, but not so bad as to call the cops again. When the trial came around, they sentenced him to 1 year in prison. When he went to prison, he lost everything. They repossessed his car. Everyone got evicted and the girlfriend and her mother went and lived with her sister.
When Mike was released from prison, the court issued a restraining order saying he cannot go within 500 feet of his girlfriend. But when he got out, he literally had nothing and nowhere to go. No money. I gave him $2000 to get back on his feet. I told him I will help him more as long as he never goes back to her again. But you guessed it, he went back to her again. He said he wanted to use her to help earn an income so he can get back on his feet. Soon they both got jobs. She worked at Petco and he worked in construction. They also sold whatever they could find in yard sales, on Amazon. But, after a while their drinking got out of control again and she didn’t go to work. And that leads up to the 5-year mark.
Mike finally found a better paying job in Texas with Amazon. So they decided to move there. Once they arrived, they found a mobile home for rent and they both decided to stop drinking. They both stopped drinking completely. Mike soon found a better job with the Toyota factory there. It paid better and was closer. They were doing ok for a while. Mike was promoted from the warehouse to inspector which meant better pay. But he got sick.
Mike got a bacterial infection called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) that made him stay home sick. He also got Pancreatitis. He took all his sick days and vacation days off. Then he applied for disability and took FML thinking he would still have a job after he got well again. But after 6 months they let him go because he didn’t follow the process correctly.
Since they both have no jobs, all the money they had ran out and they started drinking and fighting constantly. He was planning to leave and come back to California so he can start over because now he realized how bad it is to live with her. He needs to support himself, not both of them. And get sober.
So last week he decided to do it. He grabbed some clothes and his shoes, jumped in the car and took off to California. She immediately called the cops and said that he stole the car. It’s actually registered in both their names. The police found Mike right away. After they found him, they checked the registration and saw that it was indeed his car. They were going to let him go but she then told the cops that there is a restraining order against him and that he shouldn’t be living with her at all.
Upon hearing about the restraining order, they arrested him and he went to jail again. He had forgotten about the restraining order and she used it against him. They let her come get the car. My dad heard about him being in jail again and took $1500, his stimulus check and some extra cash he had, and bailed him out. Mike knew now that if he went back to her again, it would mean more prison time. So he called the police to escort him back to their house so he can get his things.
The police escorted him back and she hid the car. But they didn’t do anything to her. The car had his clothes, his shoes, and his bibles. All the things he wanted to take with him to California. But she hid the car and the cops weren’t going to help him find it. He stayed a few blocks away near a store for a while thinking he knew where it was hidden but she got busy telling all their friends that Mike tried to steal the car and that he stole a lot of money from her and got arrested for it. He didn’t steal anything but no one was going to help him and he couldn’t find the car.
So we're back to where my dad sent him another $300 to help him get a bus ride home. Like I said earlier, Mike has made a lot of bad decisions over the past 10 years. But he’s back in California and the one mistake he made, going back to her time and time again, he can’t make anymore. She has his stimulus check and the car. She has the dogs, and she has the support of all their friends in Texas. But Mike has nothing.
If anyone can help him with a little charity. PLEASE HELP! He just needs a place to find a place to stay so he can take a shower and get another job so he can take care of himself. He’s terrified of living on the street. He doesn’t want a dog. He doesn’t drink anymore. He has a bike. I also gave him 5 pairs of pants, socks, shirts, and shoes. I got lots of stuff he can sell or pawn but the pawnshops are closed because of the coronavirus. He needs cash to help keep him going until he finds a room and a job to start earning a living again.
Thanks,
Dave